An historic country house which once hosted the poet Shelley will open its doors to the public for the first time in two years.

Plas Tan Yr Allt has been "brought back to life" by Mark White and Howard Mattingley, who purchased the Tremadog building in April last year.

It is the former home of renowned entrepreneur and philanthropist William Madocks who founded Tremadog and Porthmadog and built the Cob.

Legend has it's also where poet Percy Bysshe Shelley dodged an assassination attempt.

When the famous - whose second wife was Frankenstein author Mary Shelley - stayed at Plas Tan-Yr-Allt, the story goes he was shot at by a disgruntled local, giving birth to the tale of Shelley’s Ghost.

The building has now been restored to its former glory and will reopen as a B&B on Monday.

Inside Plas Tan Yr Allt

Howard Mattingley, who went to school in Barmouth as a youngster, said: “Between 1812-13 Shelley stayed at the house with his wife and it is here that he completed his poem Queen Mab.

“It is said that he had annoyed some of the residents in the area with his outspoken views and he may have even owed some people money, we’ll never really know, but legend says he was shot at from outside the drawing room window.

“Apparently he fled the country and went to Dublin, and never came to Wales again.”

The historic property is thought to be the first Regency Villa in North Wales, and was also home to Hilda Greaves, the aunt of the architect Sir Clough Williams-Ellis, creator of the Italianate village Portmeirion.

Other visitors to the house include Elizabeth Billington, the opera singer of her day, Thomas love Peacock an associate of Shelley and E F Benson who wrote the Mapp & Lucia novels.

Percy Bysshe Shelley stayed at Plas Tan Yr Allt (Image: Getty Images)

The duo had wanted to move out of London for three years and had viewed nearly 70 properties in an attempt to find a home that “ticked all the boxes” in the area.

Mark said: “I’d lost all hope of finding anywhere by this point, and I was about to give up.